It has been a tumultuous year in South African politics, but we end it in slightly better shape than we started it – with a dangerous president increasingly running out of road, writes Arthur Christopher.

Catastrophic to let Greece leave the Eurozone – Merkel

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said it would be “catastrophic” to allow Greece to leave the eurozone because of its debt problems.

She said Athens had a “long and arduous road” to recovery after being forced to seek two international rescue packages, but it would be a “huge political mistake to allow Greece to leave” the single European currency.

“We have taken the decision to be in a currency union. This is not only a monetary decision it is a political one,” Merkel said in a BBC interview, speaking in German through a translator.

“It would be catastrophic if we were to say (to) one of those who have decided to be with us, ‘We no longer want you.’

“Incidentally the (European Union) treaties don’t allow for that anyway. People all over the world would ask, ‘Who will be next?’ The Euro area would be incredibly weakened.”

Asked about the emergence of anti-German sentiment over Berlin’s leading role in dealing with the debt crisis, Merkel said: “The European discussion over the euro has become almost domestic politics.

“We debate very harshly in our parliaments and we use tough words. That has characterised Europe-wide debates too.”

But she added: “Thankfully we have learnt to solve our conflicts peacefully, to talk about them and to turn this crisis into opportunity.”

In the interview with the BBC’s “Newsnight” programme, Merkel also reiterated her support for Britain’s strong presence in the EU, despite Prime Minister David Cameron’s move to block a new fiscal pact in December.

“Britain needs to know that we in Germany want a strong Britain in the EU, we always have and we always will,” she said.

Join the conversation!

24.com encourages commentary submitted via MyNews24. Contributions of 200 words or more will be considered for publication.

We reserve editorial discretion to decide what will be published. Read our comments policy for guidelines on contributions.

24.com publishes all comments posted on articles provided that they adhere to our Comments Policy. Should you wish to report a comment for editorial review, please do so by clicking the 'Report Comment' button to the right of each comment.

Tell us a bit about yourself:

Saving your profile

Settings

News24 allows you to edit the display of certain components based on a location.
If you wish to personalise the page based on your preferences, please select a
location for each component and click "Submit" in order for the changes to
take affect.

Your Location*

Weather*

Always remember my setting

Saving your settings

Facebook Sign-In

Hi News addict,

Join the News24 Community to be involved in breaking the news.

Log in with Facebook to comment and personalise news, weather and listings.